Germany's defence minister said on Sunday that the European Union must discuss banning the import of Russian gas after Ukrainian and European officials accused Russian forces of committing atrocities near Kyiv.
"There has to be a response. Such crimes must not remain unanswered," the defence ministry quoted Christine Lambrecht as saying in an interview with the public broadcaster ARD.
Berlin has so far resisted calls to impose an embargo on energy imports from Russia, saying its economy and that of other European countries are too dependent on them. Russia supplies 40% of Europe's gas needs. Economy Minister Robert Habeck repeated the government stance on Sunday evening on the broadcaster ZDF, saying Germany was reducing its dependence on Russian energy but could not wean itself off entirely straight away.
Pressure is growing on and within the government to take more radical steps. Lambrecht said EU ministers would now have to discuss a ban, according to a Twitter post from her ministry.
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